Lady Vols pull away in 2nd half

Angie Bjorklund did not disappoint.

The same can’t be said for Gonzaga, which dropped a 77-58 decision to eighth-ranked Tennessee Tuesday night before the first women’s basketball sellout of 6,000 fans at McCarthey Athletic Center.

Bjorklund, the former University High School star, scored the first basket for the Lady Vols and hit the 3-pointer at 5:27 of the first half that put the two-time defending national champions ahead for good and finished with 14 points, sharing the team lead with backup Alyssia Brewer.

“It was tough,” Gonzaga point guard Courtney Vandersloot said. “I don’t think we played our best game, but at the same time you have to contribute that to Tennessee. I wish we would have come out here and had a better showing, but it was a good atmosphere and a good experience for all of us.”

The Bulldogs (11-4) stayed with the Lady Vols (10-2) until a late flurry that included Bjorklund’s back-to-back 3s produced a 38-33 halftime lead. Then a 10-4 surge 5 minutes into the second half put the lead in double figures and Tennessee wasn’t threatened thereafter.

“It took us quite a while to break the game open and that’s a real credit to them,” Tennessee Hall of Fame coach Pat Summitt said. “I thought we did a better job with our individual effort 1-on-1 defensively. We picked it up closing out the first half, and more importantly the second half was big for us. We talked about the fact we weren’t defending and rebounding the way we had to.”

The Lady Vols shot 50 percent in both halves. But after committing 11 turnovers in the first half, they finished with just 19 and increased a four-rebound advantage to 15 with 10 offensive rebounds in the second half.

“Honestly, I’m disappointed,” Gonzaga coach Kelly Graves said. “They stepped up the intensity and we didn’t go with them. The elite teams do that. We executed our game plan well for the most part then bigger, better athletes took over. That’s what smart, good teams do, well-coached teams.”

The Bulldogs shot 30 percent in the second half and 37 percent for the game and had 15 turnovers, 13 of them UT steals.

Tennessee’s 6-foot-4 sophomore forward Vikki Baugh had 12 points and 15 rebounds and 6-2 freshman Shekinna Stricklen, who started at forward and played a lot of point guard, had 12 points, five assists and four steals.

The Lady Vols outscored GU 38-20 inside, 18-13 off turnovers, 20-11 on second-chance efforts and, most telling, 29-6 off the bench.

“I just can’t rely on my bench,” said Graves, who was short his best outside shooter and best defender because of major injuries. “Their depth, there’s nothing like depth.”

Heather Bowman led the Bulldogs with 19 points, but she only had one basket and six points in the second half.

“What we talked about is we can’t have any throwaway possessions … that hurt us,” Bowman, who had seven rebounds, said. “It was definitely really physical inside, but it was fun. It was a good challenge playing against girls that size.”

Vandersloot added 13 points and 10 assists, but she wore down and had seven turnovers and made just 5 of 18 shots.

“I think it had a lot to do with those long arms out there,” she said. “I’m not used to shooting over those long arms.”

In Graves’ opinion, Bjorklund, who missed the first five games with a back injury, is the glue for the Volunteers.

“Angie Bjorklund is the difference maker on that team,” he said. “They’re a better team when she’s on the floor. I saw games with her, without her, when she had limited minutes, and they’re better when she’s on the court.

“I don’t just say that because she’s our friend and a local. She really is the key to their team – from an outside observer. She can stretch the defense. She’s just a calming influence. … She just understands how to play. She’s as smart a player as you’re ever going to see.”

A down note for both teams is that one of the injured Bulldogs was Bjorklund’s senior sister, Jami Schaefer, who had 19 points when they met in Knoxville last season.

“We were very pleased we could bring Angie back here but very disappointed Jami got injured,” Summitt said. “In our minds, that was going to be quite a matchup for those two.”

“It was a little disappointing, but things happen and you just have to go with it,” Bjorklund said. “I thought I did pretty well, but I thought as a team we did great – Vicki having 15 rebounds and four players in double digits.”

In the end, it was about results.

“We’re honored they came in and played us, but obviously we wanted to win the game,” Graves said. “I don’t think everybody was here to compete tonight and you’ve got to have that. It will be a lesson learned. We’ll use it to get better in our league. We want to win our league and have a chance to play teams like that again.”

The Bulldogs are home against St. Joseph’s on Friday.